Chapter 9 - The Court's Decision
The six months ended on a Tuesday in April.
The dogwoods were in bloom along Front Street, their white petals floating in the gutters like scraps of paper.
Janice Vance was waiting for them at the courthouse. She had a new folder now, this one three inches thick, filled with school records for Caroline (who had enrolled in the community college’s accounting class), health charts for Emma, and three letters of reference from people in town who had seen Caroline working at the house.
"The state is satisfied," Janice said, her voice almost warm. "The petition for sole custody is granted to the mother, with Walter Holloway as the designated co-guardian."
The judge didn't even use his glasses this time. He signed the paper, looked at Emma—who was now seven months old and wore a pink sweater Margaret had knitted—and smiled.
"You’ve done a good job, Walter," the judge said. "Your father would have been proud of that brickwork."
"Thank you, Your Honor," Walter said.
When they came out of the courthouse, the air was warm, smelling of salt and damp earth.
Caroline stopped on the steps. She looked at the paper in her hand, her thumb running over the gold seal of the county.
"It’s mine," she said. "She’s mine."
"She’s yours," Walter said.
She turned to him, her eyes bright. "And yours."
Walter looked at the harbor, where the trawlers were coming in with the tide, their nets dripping with foam.
"I’m sixty-one, Caroline," he said. "I’m an old man with bad knees and a house that’s too big for him."
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"The house isn't too big anymore," she said.
She reached out and took his arm, her fingers tucking into the sleeve of his coat.
